Man faces murder, attempted murder charges in Marquette Park shooting

Roosevelt Washington, 34, was ordered held without bail for allegedly killing Alonzo Bellamy and wounding another man. | Adobe Stock Photo

A man accused of murdering a 41-year-old man and wounding another in Marquette Park last spring was ordered held without bail Wednesday.

An assistant Cook County public defender said 34-year-old Roosevelt Washington, who is charged with killing Alonzo Bellamy, works for the anti-violence group CeaseFire.

On the night of the April 19 shooting, Bellamy and a 31-year-old man were hanging out and walking a dog in the 6600 block of South Washtenaw Avenue when they encountered Washington, prosecutors said.

Roosevelt Washington

“What the f--- are you doing here, Skeeno?” Bellamy asked Washington.

Washington allegedly responded by pulling out a gun and shooting.

Bellamy was shot 13 times, prosecutors said.

Bellamy’s friend ran into the street, fell and then went through a gangway before he was shot five times, prosecutors said.

Bellamy’s friend’s brother came out of his basement apartment when he heard the gunshots. Eventually, both victims ended up inside the residence, prosecutors said.

Before dying, Bellamy allegedly told the friend’s brother, “Skeeno shot me.”

The friend’s brother, who did not know “Skeeno,” went online and found a photo on Facebook and provided it to detectives, who later identified the man in the picture as Washington, prosecutors said.

The surviving victim also identified Washington in a photo array provided by detectives, prosecutors said.

The assistant public defender questioned Wednesday why it took so long for prosecutors to charge Washington with murder and attempted murder if both victims had identified him right away.

Washington was paroled in April 2019 after his second weapons conviction, state records show. He also has previous convictions for aggravated robbery and drug possession, according to court records.

When Judge John F. Lyke Jr heard, Washington, a father of eight, had been a CeaseFire worker, he said, “If I’ve never heard an irony in my life; he works for CeaseFire. Unbelievable.”

The original CeaseFire was created the Chicago Project for Violence Prevention, which was created in 1995.

Neither organization still exists, but some groups in the city still use the CeaseFire name.

The original CeaseFire mediated conflicts between gangs and gained national attention when it was profiled in the 2011 documentary “The Interrupters.”

The city ended a one-year contact with the program in 2013 and a state grant for the organization was suspended in 2015.

Washington is expected back in court on Aug. 10.